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Who pays for the sewer lateral in Anacortes, WA

Which part of the pipe is yours

your buildingproperty linesidewalkstreetmain
The thick length is yours.

If something’s wrong

If a repair needs a permit or an inspection

  • Before work on the pipe · Permit

    Who issues it:
    City of Anacortes - plumbing inspector
    What it covers:
    uncovering, connecting with, opening into, using, altering or disturbing any public sewer

    Anacortes Municipal Code section 13.12.090 provides that "No unauthorized person shall uncover, or make any connection with or opening into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer, without first obtaining a written permit from the plumbing inspector of the city."

The repair rule in full, with its sources

Buying or selling?

No rule on file here is specific to selling or buying; that does not mean none exists.

Who to call first about the sewer lateral

BelowGrid has no first-call guidance on file from Anacortes about the sewer lateral.

Anacortes: official site(opens in a new tab)The documents this answer is built on

Who is responsible for which part

In Anacortes the property owner pays for repairing and replacing the private side sewer all the way to the public sewer main. Section 13.04.045(B)(1) of the Anacortes Municipal Code provides that "The property owner is responsible for the cost of repair, installation and replacement of the private sanitary side sewer from the structure to the point of connection at the public sewer main."

The property owner
The private sanitary side sewer from the structure to the point of connection at the public sewer main. The owner "is liable for all damages due to the failure to properly install, repair or maintain the private sanitary side sewer."

What else is worth knowing

The dividing point is the connection at the public sewer main. Section 13.04.045(C) provides that "The city may repair or replace private sanitary side sewers in public right-of-way when, in the judgment of the public works director or his designee, repair or replacement of the sanitary side sewer is in the public interest" - a discretion, not a duty. These sections govern property on the City's sewer; check the name on your sewer bill if you are not sure the City serves you.

Sources

Anacortes Municipal Code section 13.04.045, Sanitary side sewer definition

Checked

What the rules say

Most relevant if you are selling or buying

No rule on file here is specific to selling or buying; that does not mean none exists.

Also in force here

  • Before work on the pipePermit
    Who issues it:
    City of Anacortes - plumbing inspector
    What it covers:
    uncovering, connecting with, opening into, using, altering or disturbing any public sewer

    Anacortes Municipal Code section 13.12.090 provides that "No unauthorized person shall uncover, or make any connection with or opening into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer, without first obtaining a written permit from the plumbing inspector of the city."

    What to do: Before connecting a side sewer to the public sewer, or uncovering, opening into or altering it, apply to the City of Anacortes plumbing inspector on the City's form, with any plans the inspector asks for, and pay the connection fee and inspection fee before the permit is issued.

    Why this matters

    The owner pays to repair, install and replace the private side sewer up to its connection at the public sewer main. Work that connects to, opens into, uncovers or disturbs the public sewer needs the City's written permit first; the section does not say whether repair work wholly on private land needs this permit.

    Current wording dates from · Checked

    Anacortes Municipal Code section 13.12.090

What this page cannot tell you

  • No assistance or grant programme has been reviewed for this jurisdiction yet.
  • No sewer service territory has been mapped for this area, so BelowGrid cannot say who serves an individual address.

Who governs and serves this area

Jurisdiction
Anacortes (municipality)
Sewer service
No map of sewer providers is held here. BelowGrid cannot say which sewer provider serves an individual address.

How this compares to neighbouring cities

The nearest city draws the line in the same place. Each authority publishes only its own rule.

  • Anacortes(this page)
    the main
  • Bellinghamabout 20 mi
    the main

Distances are approximate, in a straight line between the places’ centres.

Your other pipe: the water service line

The drinking water line coming into your property is a separate pipe, run by a separate authority, and who is responsible for it is decided separately. Your sewer lateral is yours to the main; your water line stops being yours at the meter.

Who owns the water service line in Anacortes

Nearby cities and further reading

Look up a specific address

This page describes what applies to properties in Anacortes in general. To see which authorities serve one address, and what records exist for it, search for it.

Search for an address